In October 1964 the buzz at my school in Epsom,Surrey in the UK was about an amazing group who had started playing gigs at a pub in nearby Richmond.They called themselves the Rolling Stones.What's more they were going to play at Epsom Baths Hall in a few weeks.Now the Baths Hall was actually the municipal swimming pool which was drained in the winter and a wooden floor put in. No seats- just standing room only.There was a raised stage at one end.
A group of us paid our five shillings each- probably about $2.50 in today's money adjusting for inflation-for a ticket and saw this amazing performance by the Stones.I can still picture Mick Jagger leaping across the little stage doing"Satisfaction' and he is still doing it.Just imagine singing "Satisfaction" for 50 years and still being enthusiastic about it.The extraordinary thing looking back is that there was only a small crowd and it cost us so little.Mind you I can also distinctly remember my father telling me that I must be mad to pay good money to see such nonsense.I wish that he was here today to see how far sighted I was...
Anyway Karl-Heinz Schroeder in the US sent me this photo taken on a Leica M9 and it all came back to me.The photo was apparently taken at Key West in Florida.Quite why a red rooster was looking at a truck in Key West was not explained but perhaps Mick was in town and he wanted to hear him sing.....
I am the little red rooster
Too lazy to crow for day
I am the little red rooster
Too lazy to crow for day
Keep everything in the farm yard upset in every way
The dogs begin to bark and hounds begin to howl
Dogs begin to bark and hounds begin to howl
Watch out strange cat people
Little red roosters on the prowl
If you see my little red rooster
Please drive him home
If you see my little red rooster
Please drive him home
Aint had no peace in the farm yard
Since my little red roosters been gone
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ReplyDeleteNow that you've changed your schoolie outing to 1964 - it's timely to tell you that the song wasn't recorded until 1965 after Mick Jagger wrote the lyrics. He was living in the US at the time. Gonna remove this one as well?
ReplyDeleteAnonymous I will respond to you with greater courtesy than you probably deserve.I removed your original post because you kindly pointed out a factual error which I corrected and this rendered your comment redundant.I am not a young man and the post referred to events 50 years ago and my memory was faulty.It happens to us all.
ReplyDeleteI will not be removing your second comment because I do not claim in the blog that I heard the Stones singing Little Red Rooster live .I just used the photo as an intro to the anecdote about the Stones.There is no implication in my blog that the song was sung in 1964.
I run this blog for fun-- as a means of posting photos and anecdotes for my friends and casual visitors.I never claim it as an authoritative source. .It is what it is -the rolling road.
Most of the comments I receive are friendly and helpful but lately as reader numbers have increased I notice that I am receiving more aggressive /unfriendly comments with an unpleasant tone.No one asked anyone to read this blog-it's a trifle.Just for fun.If it annoys you or makes you upset don't be unpleasant to me- just go and read something else.